Russia continues to use significant number of aircraft, but they are ineffective – UK intel
The UK Defense Ministry said this in an intelligence update published on Twitter, Ukrinform reports.
Over the summer, Russian tactical combat aircraft have typically carried out over 100 sorties a day, but these are almost always restricted to operating over Russian-controlled territory due to the threat from Ukrainian air defenses, the update said.
"Russia has attempted to overcome this issue by increasingly using basic free-fall bombs with range-extending glide attachments. Aircraft can release these many kilometers from their targets, but they have yet to demonstrate consistent accuracy," the ministry added.
According to British intelligence, at the start of Ukraine's southern counter-offensive from June 2023, Russian attack helicopters proved effective.
"However, in recent weeks Russia appears to have been less able to generate effective tactical airpower in the south," the update said.
Between February 24, 2022 and August 7, 2023, Ukraine's defense forces eliminated about 250,240 Russian invaders, including 540 on August 6 alone.
